Cardiac Patient Flashcards
Treatment of the CV patient requires multiple avenues of treatment:
- diet
- medication
- exercise
- stress reduction
- smoking cessation
- integrate your treatment
Cardiac Sympathetics
- origins in T1-6 with synapses in the upper thoracic and cervical chain ganglia
- fibers originating from the right pass to the right deep cardiac plexus
- fibers originating from the left pass through the left deep plexus and inverted AV node
Right deep cardiac plexus
- innervates the SA node
- hyperactivity predisposes to supraventricular tachyarrhythmias
Left deep cardiac plexus
- innervates AV node
- hyperstimulation predisposes to ectopic foci and ventricullar fibrillation
Increased sympathetic tone linked to
- coronary vasospasm
- associated with increased morbidity post-MI (inhibits collateral circulation development)
Vessels are rich in sympathetics:
- vasoconstriction: increases peripheral vascular resistance; produces a shunt from one area to another
- decreased tone=vasodilation
Cardiac Parasympathetics
- right vagus nerve primarily to SA node
- left vagus nerve supplies AV node
- visceral-visceral reflexes
Right vagus nerve hyperactivity
-leads to sinus bradyarrythmias
Left vagus nerve hyperactivity
leads to AV block
Visceral-visceral reflexes
-pulmonary branches strongest inhibitor reflex–aspiration
Visceral-visceral reflexes (slowing of heart rate)
- irritation of larynx
- pressure on carotid body
- pressure on globe of eye (oculocardiac reflex): less affect in sympathecotonic patients; more affective in vagotonia patients
Vagal connections abundant at
OA, AA and C2 areas
PNS Vasculature involvement
- submaxillary gland vessels
- parotid gland vessels
- vessels of blush region of face
- vessels of tongue
- vessels of the penis
Cardio Lymphatics
- drainage from the heart and lungs mainly via the right lymphatic duct
- impaired drainage known to severely compromise homeostatic mechanisms: increased morbidity and mortality with ischemia and infection
- peripherally, lymphatic congestion has been linked to atherosclerosis and HTN
Lymphatics play significant role in
- pulmonary edema
- ascites
- hepatomegaly
- peripheral edema in CHF: electrolyte imbalance develops; increases morbidity
Thoracic duct
- under sympathetic control
- hypersympathetic activity can reduce flow
Somatic involvement in Cardiac disease
- severe scoliosis (75 degrees thoracic curve) compromises cardiac function
- compensatory musculoskeletal problems reflexly affect cardiac function
- must treat postural stressor
- longer lasting changes to compensatory changes with OMM
Somatic involvement in cardiac disease: gait
- in patients with decreased cardiac output, abnormal gait patterns increase cardiac workload up to 300%
- optimizing the gait pattern will give back strength to fulfill activities of daily living
Somatic involvement in cardiac disease: anterior chest wall syndrome
- generic term for a variety of causes for substernal and/or chest pains
- often misdiagnosed as cardiac dysfunction
- somatic factors do co-exist with cardiac disease
- reduction in cardiac symptoms after OMM cannot rule out the need for further work-up or therapeutics in a given patient
Somatic causes of chest pain
- cervical, thoracic, sternal, rib dysfunction
- costochondritis (Tietze’s syndrome)
- intercostal neuritis
- myofascial trigger points–pec major and minor
- rib fractures
Classic cardiac and coronary pattern of pain referral
- upper left chest radiating out and down the inner surface of the arm and up into the neck and jaw
- palpatory changes found mostly at levels of T2-4 on the left
Anterior wall infarctions have more changes in
T1-4
Pain referral: posterior and inferior wall MI
- increased bradyarrhythmias
- palpatory changes at C2: rich in vagal connections
- may have an autonomic rationale for these changes
Hypertension is strongly associated with
bilateral trophic changes at T5-7, T8-T10, and T11-L2
- study controlled for age, sex, and other comorbid condition
- diabetes T10-11